LAW SOCIETY Gazette€3.75 Aug/Sept 2006 ELECTRO-SHOCK: Serious errors revealed in Irish Statute Book online INSIDE: SUMO SOLICITOR • THE LESSONS OF L’AFFAIRE DREYFUS • YOUR LETTERS • PRACTICE DOCTOR Established by Solicitors for Solicitors Your professional indemnity should be with SMDF because... • SMDF offers the best value in the market. • SMDF has unrivalled expertise over 18 years. • SMDF gives solicitors direct access so members know who they are dealing with. • SMDF wants to pay claims, not refuse them, with a benign and proven late notification policy. • SMDF gives discounts to firms newly established. • SMDF offer continuity, consistency and stability. • SMDF is here to stay, not cheap today and gone tomorrow. • SMDF operates exclusively in Ireland. • SMDF offer a choice of panel solicitor in the event of a notification. • SMDF provides risk management to its members. • SMDF has a solicitor friendly proposal form. Trust And Support Your Mutual... Remember, SMDF was set up by solicitors to counteract the excessive premia being charged by the market. Interested? Call 01 676 3118, or visit our website www.smdf.ie or contact [email protected] be with Lending criteria, terms and conditions apply. Allied Irish Banks, p.l.c. is regulated by the Financial Regulator. LAW SOCIETY GAZETTE AUG/SEPT 2006 CONTENTS LAW SOCIETY On the cover LAW SOCIETY Serious errors in the electronic Gazette€3.75 Aug/Sept 2006 version of the Irish Statute Book have come to light. So how much longer should lawyers in Ireland have to endure an Gazette outdated, and now unreliable, electronic statute book? Aug/Sept 2006 PIC: GETTY IMAGES ELECTRO-SHOCK: Serious errors revealed in Irish Statute Book online Volume 100, number 7 INSIDE: SUMO SOLICITOR • THE LESSONS OF L’AFFAIRE DREYFUS • YOUR LETTERS • PRACTICE DOCTOR Subscriptions: €57 REGULARS 5 President’s message 7 News l’Affaire Dreyfus – lessons for today 14 The second annual human rights lecture focused on the lessons to be learned from the Dreyfus Affair 100 years ago 17 Letters Practice doctor 37 Briefing forensic accountants 11 Book reviews 39 Memoirs from Tipperary, and Irish Conveyancing Law People and places 40 Charity triathlon, PDs at Blackhall, Bar Association meetings and more Obituary 42 Emer Casey, 1978-2006 Briefing 43 43 Council reports 45 Committee reports 46 Practice notes 49 Legislation update: 24 June – 21 August 14 55 Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal reports 58 Eurlegal: ‘jumping the gun’ in merger deals 60 Professional notices Recruitment advertising 67 Twenty-four pages of job vacancies, and not a PQE reference in sight! Editor: Mark McDermott. Deputy editor: Garrett O’Boyle. Designer: Nuala Redmond. Editorial secretaries: Catherine Kearney, Valerie Farrell. For professional notice rates (lost land certificates, wills, title deeds, employment, miscellaneous), see page 61. Commercial advertising: Seán Ó hOisín, 10 Arran Road, Dublin 9; tel: 837 5018, fax: 884 4626, mobile: 086 811 7116, email: [email protected]. Printing: Turner’s Printing Company Ltd, Longford. Editorial board: Stuart Gilhooly (chairman), Mark McDermott (secretary), Pamela Cassidy, Tom Courtney, Eamonn Hall, Philip Joyce, Michael Kealey, Mary Keane, 41 Patrick J McGonagle, Ken Murphy, Michael V O’Mahony, William Prentice. 2 www.lawsociety.ie CONTENTS LAW SOCIETY GAZETTE AUG/SEPT 2006 Get more at lawsociety.ie PROFESSIONAL NOTICES: send your small advert details, with payment, to: Gazette Office, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, tel: 01 672 4828, or email: [email protected]. Gazette readers can access back issues of the ALL CHEQUES SHOULD BE MADE PAYABLE TO LAW SOCIETY OF IRELAND. magazine as far back as Jan/Feb 1997 right up to the current issue at lawsociety.ie. COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING: contact Seán Ó hOisín, 10 Arran Road, Dublin 9, tel: 01 837 5018, fax: 884 4626, mobile: 086 811 7116, email: [email protected] You can also check out: • Current news HAVE YOU MOVED? Members of the profession should send change-of-address • Forthcoming events, including a Certificate in details to: IT Section, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, or to: [email protected] Essential Conveyancing for Practitioners (9 Oct) Subscribers to the Gazette should send change-of-address details to: • Employment opportunities Gazette Office, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, or to: [email protected] • The latest CPD courses HOW TO REACH US: Law Society Gazette, Blackhall Place, Dublin 7. … as well as lots of other useful information Tel: 01 672 4828, fax: 01 672 4877, email: [email protected] FEATURES COVER STORY: 18 Electro-shock With the revelation of serious errors in the Irish Statute Book online, Brian Hunt argues that the electronic version of legislation is not acceptable for evidential purposes and that the AG’s office should now take the opportunity to overhaul the data and how it’s presented The art of restoration 22 Greater activity by the Registrar of Companies in striking companies off the register has led to a dramatic increase in the number of company restoration applications. Elaine Grier slips on her restorer’s gloves Dog eat dog 26 One of the most controversial issues in the mongrel legislation governing PIAB is that of joining defendants to an existing action. Stuart Gilhooly walks the dog 26 Expert assistance 30 The rules relating to the disclosure of expert reports in personal injury actions are still something of a novelty. Joice Carthy looks at the background to the current rules and the reasons for their introduction Hitting a century 34 The Law Society should have got its letter from the President in the 1950s, but they only do that for people, apparently. Mark McDermott continues the journey through the decades, as reflected in the pages of the Gazette The Law Society of Ireland can accept no responsibility for the accuracy of contributed articles or statements appearing in this magazine, and any views or opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Law Society’s Council, save where otherwise indicated. No responsibility for loss or distress occasioned to any person acting or refraining from acting as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by the authors, contributors, editor or publishers. The editor reserves the right to make publishing decisions on any advertisement or editorial article submitted to this magazine, and to refuse publication or to edit any editorial material as seems appropriate to him. Professional legal advice should always be sought in relation to any specific matter. Published at Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, tel: 01 672 4800, fax: 01 672 4877. Email: [email protected] Law Society website: www.lawsociety.ie 34 www.lawsociety.ie 3 …information as you need it ■ Company Registration Office ■ Irish Company Information ■ Closing Searches ■ UK Company Information ■ Copy Folio/File Plans ■ Land Registry ■ Folio Inspections ■ CID Search ■ Registry of Deeds ■ Watch List ■ Licensing ■ Closing Searches ■ Planning ■ Judgment Searches ■ Probate ■ Global Company Information ■ Title Registration ■ Legal Diary ■ Birth, Marriage & Death Certificates ■ Legal search archive ■ Mapping Searches ■ Bonded searches rochford brady legal services LawLink Ltd. 64 francis street 7/8 mount street crescent dublin 8 dublin 2 tel 1850 529 732 tel +353 1 480 1800 fax 1850 752 436 fax +353 1 480 1801 www.lawsearch.ie www.lawlink.ie email: [email protected] email: [email protected] PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE LAW SOCIETY GAZETTE AUG/SEPT 2006 Upholding the rule of law ummer is rapidly coming to a close and it is, therefore, appropriate that I write to inform you of certain of my activities during that period. The Law S Society team working on legal costs have made submissions and met with the Legal Costs Implementation Advisory Group. The team has welcomed certain of the principles enshrined in the Haran Report, such as the retention of costs following the event in civil litigation. At the same time, we have emphasised that proposed reforms in place of the present taxation system should be practical, workable and not result in additional expense, delay or injustice to clients. The Society believes that a great amount of work will have to be undertaken prior to the implementation of any “It is very reform. The Law Society team will continue to which was brought before it in July. It is important encouraging monitor and engage with both the implementation that access to justice be widened. The resolution group and the Department of Justice, as appropriate. passed will assist in education and in the provision of to see at first I am most grateful to the chairman of the Society’s funds. This is most welcome. Above all, the Society hand that our team, Gerard Griffin, and his entire group for all must continue to lobby for civil legal aid to be the work they have done to date. increased and widened. profession is The Society has, over a number of years, In July, another visit was undertaken to South socially aware requested the introduction of limited liability Africa by a group of solicitors to provide education partnerships. It was encouraging to learn that the in commercial law for lawyers from historically and does care. minister responsible for company law has now disadvantaged backgrounds. The visit was a great We have a formally placed limited liability partnerships on the success; warm appreciation was expressed to the work programme of the Company Law Review profession for undertaking this activity. right to be Group. It is hoped that work will commence on this Much has been stated internationally of the need proud of our topic in November 2006. The task force on limited for lawyers to value and uphold the rule of law. The liability partnerships for the solicitors’ profession, American Bar Association, conscious of achievements” headed by Paul Egan, will be carefully monitoring Guantanámo, is spearheading a drive to emphasise the situation. My thanks to it for all its work in this the rule of law on a worldwide basis.